Education, youth and the urgency for reform

The future of any nation is written in its classrooms.

When learning outcomes fail, national progress is imperilled. Ghana’s observance of this year’s International Day of Education, therefore, comes at a critical moment, as the country grapples with worrying learning outcomes, particularly the poor performance recorded in the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).

In 2018, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed January 24 as the International Day of Education to underscore the role of inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities in ending poverty and advancing development.

This year’s celebration places the youth at the centre, recognising them as agents of change in building peaceful, just and inclusive societies.

The theme aligns closely with Sustainable Development Goal Four (SDG 4), which seeks to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all by 2030.

SDG 4 emphasises eliminating gender disparities, expanding access to free primary and secondary education, and strengthening vocational training as pathways to empowerment and poverty reduction.

In Ghana, stakeholders in the education sector marked the day with a dialogue aimed at addressing systemic weaknesses within the education system.

The engagement focused on diagnosing the causes of declining learning outcomes and proposing policy and institutional reforms.

The discussions were prompted by what participants described as devastating and uninspiring results in the 2025 WASSCE.

The poor performance of candidates is a matter of national concern.

The youth represent the country’s greatest asset and its future workforce.

When their education falters, their capacity to drive national development is diminished.

It is for this reason that the International Day of Education appropriately situates the youth at the heart of the global education agenda, not only as beneficiaries but as catalysts for national transformation.

At the dialogue, the General Secretary of the National Council of Parent-Teacher Associations (NCPTA), Raphael Kofi Gabson, proposed concrete steps to reverse the downward trend.

He called for the introduction of a national emergency teaching and learning recovery programme and recommended targeted retraining and redeployment of teachers, particularly in persistently low-performing schools.

These interventions, he suggested, should be informed by an analysis of BECE and WASSCE performance trends over at least five years.

For us at the Daily Graphic, this moment calls for unity rather than blame.

Apportioning responsibility for the poor performance of the 2025 WASSCE candidates will not solve the problem.

What is required is a frank and objective assessment of the underlying causes, guided by a careful interrogation of the Chief Examiner’s Report.

Until the nation collectively acknowledges the existence of a problem and commits to addressing it without partisanship or recrimination, meaningful progress will remain elusive. This challenge demands sober reflection, collaboration and a sense of urgency.

The recommendations emerging from the dialogue are therefore timely and deserve serious consideration.

If Ghana is truly committed to fast-tracking its development agenda, it must invest decisively in the quality of education delivered to its youth.

In particular, the proposal for a national emergency teaching and learning recovery programme is worth pursuing.

Such a programme should allow for additional instructional time to make up for learning deficits, supported by appropriate motivational packages for teachers.

The disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the introduction of the double track system significantly reduced teacher-student contact hours, leaving many learners struggling to catch up.

During that period, teacher motivation initiatives were introduced to encourage extra instructional time.

While opinions may differ on their effectiveness, the underlying principle—that teachers need support and incentives to go the extra mile—remains valid and relevant.

Equally important is the call for targeted retraining and redeployment of teachers.

Many low-performing schools, particularly in rural areas, continue to suffer from acute teacher shortages, as educators often decline postings to deprived communities.

Addressing this imbalance requires deliberate policy action.

In endorsing this recommendation, the Daily Graphic believes education managers must develop attractive incentive packages to encourage teachers to accept and remain in such postings.

Bridging disparities in teacher distribution is essential to improving learning outcomes nationwide.

A well-educated youth, equipped with relevant knowledge and skills, offers Ghana its best hope for accelerated development and social progress.

That foundation must be laid firmly at the junior and senior high school levels.